Forty games into Lorenzo Romar's Washington coaching career, local basketball followers had seen enough. The Huskies had lost to Oregon on the road to begin conference play 0-5 -- posting their 25th defeat under Romar's direction. People were impatient. People were angry. People wanted to vent.

A flurry of e-mails arrived overnight at the Post-Intelligencer, with each missive increasingly more dismissive in tone.

Nothing about the program had changed. Where was the coaching? Where was the progress? Why would any high school recruit worth his Internet hype want to play college ball in Seattle?

The complaints went on and on. The program was forever doomed. Record losses were coming. Washington State had hired Dick Bennett, a certifiable basketball wizard, and what did the Huskies settle for?

"Forget hiring ex-UW players as coaches," wrote Craig Bodner, another restless fan. "Go out and get a proven coach."

Twenty-four months later, the Huskies are unbeaten in 10 games, following up a school-record 29-6 season; they're a Top 10 team in the national polls, coming on the heels of a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament; and they have what has been judged the school's greatest recruiting class waiting in the wings, coming on the heels of a another highly rated group.

Fans are showing up in record numbers. A school-record-tying third consecutive NCAA Tournament berth is considered a given. Romar is working off an eight-year contract extension. Spencer Hawes, the eager and talented 6-foot-11 3/4 signee from Seattle Prep, loosely has tossed around the words "national championship."

Putting in the hours

Hard work. Personality. Luck.

Coaching peers, active and retired, say all of the above have been responsible for turning Washington into more of a player on the college basketball scene than at any time since the Bob Houbregs-led Huskies teams of the early 1950s.

In four seasons as coach at his alma mater, Romar has distinguished himself in each of the aforementioned areas. The most visible proof has been his ability to convince top local high school players to join his program.

"They work real hard at recruiting, probably harder than anyone has worked at it in Seattle," Arizona coach Lute Olson said of Romar and his assistants. "I don't think anyone has ever done the job there that they've done."

Marv Harshman, Romar's UW coach, brought more pure basketball knowledge to the Huskies job than anyone before or since. Yet recruiting almost seemed an afterthought to the coaching legend. It was if he preferred taking the rawest talent -- someone along the lines of 7-foot Icelander Petur Gudmundsson or even a Romar -- and turning him into a polished player rather than dealing with a kid with a ready-made reputation. An ancient Edmundson Pavilion, with posts obstructing the sight lines of hundreds of seats, never helped his sales pitch much.

Bob Bender held the job for nine seasons, longer than any UW coach before him except Edmundson and Harshman. He was named 1996 Pac-10 Coach of the Year. No one questioned his X's and O's. Recruiting is what ultimately did him in with the Huskies. He got the arena posts removed, but couldn't pull down the barriers separating him from the rich talent pool centered in the heart of the city. He lost Franklin guard Jason Terry to Arizona after the kid had publicly declared his intentions for the Huskies. Bender went from a nimble and hungry Todd MacCulloch at center, to an overweight and then almost anorexic David Dixon, to out of work.

Romar has convinced Snohomish High forward Jon Brockman to say no to Duke and stay home, and followed that coup by getting Hawes to do the same with North Carolina. More than anything, people gravitate to this coach.

"He connects not only with the players, but their parents and coaches," said former Washington State and USC coach George Raveling. "His whole persona is acceptable to everyone."

"I've never known a person in coaching with that type of personality that seems to attract people all the time," Harshman said. "He can be firm. But he doesn't seem to irritate players like a lot of us did."

Romar saw the possibilities in place for greater UW basketball success early in the 2000-01 season when he brought his Saint Louis team for a non-league game at a newly remodeled Edmundson Pavilion. Before coaching the Billikens to a 69-61 victory, he took a private tour of the place. The facility was so different to him, it was as if he had never played there before. He was impressed. He allowed himself to daydream about the program's possibilities.

Fifteen months later, Romar was hired to replace Bender. From Hedges, the former UW point guard elicited budget guarantees that weren't previously in place, allowing him to hire extra personnel and schedule non-conference games more favorably. Hedges told him she was finally prepared to make a commitment to Washington basketball that previously was afforded only to football.

"I had more of a chance before I put a whistle in my mouth," Romar said. "Bob Bender didn't have some of those things. Obviously, Coach Harshman didn't."

A state away, Oregon State coach Jay John is trying to make recruiting inroads in Portland similar to what Romar has done in Seattle. Ironically, he used to be an assistant for Olson's Arizona program that raided both Northwest cities for blue-chip players at the expense of these local Pac-10 teams.

John says it's all about perception. The Huskies have changed their image, making the local talent grab work to their benefit.

"The best recruiting tool is still word of mouth," the Beavers coach said. "Most kids seem to want that quiet approval of their peers. Before, it's 'Why go there? They suck.' Now it's 'I can't wait to watch you play here.' The guys in Seattle come there now because it's a fun environment. It's in vogue to go there."

Brockman has been singled out as the player who could bring long-term success to the program, not only with his bruising rebounding ability, but also with his mere presence signaling others, such as Hawes, that to play for the Huskies can be a glamorous thing.

Doing his own checks and balances, Romar wanted to know what it was that sold the Brockman family on his program. He quizzed the player's father, Gordy, about this.

"I said, 'I want you mentoring him,' " the elder Brockman related. "The relationships between coach and player are so powerful. That doesn't mean other coaches aren't good. (Duke's Mike) Krzyzewski was pretty good.

"But I really like Lorenzo Romar. I could tell that relationship was genuine."

Not your typical program

The Huskies average a dizzying 91.6 points per game this season, leading the nation. They scored 86.5 an outing last season, second only to NCAA champion North Carolina.

Romar encourages players to come to Washington and have fun. And in order to share in the good times, they have to pay a hefty price in commitment and conditioning, and, he tells them, the rest will follow.

"I tell the young dudes this isn't your typical college basketball team," senior swingman Bobby Jones says. "You've got to be in shape. Only certain teams play like us."

It helps when your coach is a former NBA player, someone who understands points, as well as resulting victories, put players in the program and fans in the seats. To that end, Romar has utilized all available resources in impressive fashion.

"If you look at Pepperdine and Saint Louis, he did a great job, but in the Northwest, he's got a better fit, got better talent, got a better job," New Mexico coach Ritchie McKay said. "You're seeing his true abilities."

Besides effort and style, Romar has benefited from considerable luck. While Bender couldn't catch a break at times while recruiting, Romar had the good fortune of having first-round NBA draft pick Nate Robinson wander onto his team without a basketball scholarship.

Everyone involved felt a lift when Robinson hit an off-balance 3-pointer at the buzzer to force overtime and lead to an improbable, program-turning victory at Oregon State on Jan. 17, 2004. The shot that saved a season came two days after the Oregon loss, at the same time the e-mailing natives were restless.

Similar to frequent-flier miles, Romar has cashed in on his luck for destinations foreign and exciting to the Huskies. He caught the eye of coaching peers and recruiting analysts by collectively signing Brockman, Hawes and Martell Webster, though the latter opted for direct entry into the NBA.

"I'm not sure people understand or appreciate what Romar pulled off there," Raveling said. "It's like coming up to bat three straight times with the bases loaded and hitting a home run. That's how big it is. Those are three players that could start at any school in the country. It would be scary to think where he would be with Martell Webster."

No one is turning his or her back on the Huskies now, calling for another coach, calling for better days. The e-mail critics have gone silent.

While Romar is unfailingly positive and competitive, willing his way into an NBA job as a player, he understands that tough times can emerge as quickly as the good times for college coaches. He's seen it happen elsewhere. He saw it happen to Bender.

People in college basketball are convinced the Huskies won't tease their followers with fleeting success as they have before, that they will have staying power under Romar's lead.

Arizona's Olson is one of the believers. He still gets some of his talent in Seattle, with Roosevelt High's Marcus Williams turning out to be one of the league's better freshmen. Yet Olson has lost five of the past six meetings against Romar and the restocked Huskies. He carries a healthy respect for his coaching counterpart.

"I've always been a fan of Lorenzo from the time he was an assistant coach at UCLA," Olson said. "He's worked very hard, been very honest in his approach, very ethical, very morally sound.

"I'm not surprised he's having that kind of success. I'm sure it will continue."